This thing just might just be a beast.
It’s still awfully early in these arduously long NBA playoffs, but the Warriors are giving the Denver Nuggets a brutal time. Their freshly-minted lineup of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins absolutely torched Denver en route to a 126-106 win.
A euphoric Chase Center
Perhaps it was unfair to criticize the atmosphere at Chase Center during Saturday night’s matinee. It was a sleepy late afternoon game that the Warriors had secured fairly early on.
But when you see the arena in the rapturous state it found itself in on Monday night, you start to see the beginnings of the new chapter this team is beginning to write.
From the outset, it was louder, more persistent. Even in the doldrums of the first and second quarter, there was a persistent, encouraging energy belying the optimism from the weekend’s series opener.
Not even the forced, artificial “Gold-Blooded” chants could put a damper on the atmosphere.
Nothing could. The Warriors now have a three-headed monster once again. And while Jordan Poole isn’t Kevin Durant, he is as prolific a scorer and as dynamic a facilitator as any player in the NBA right now.
When you’ve got Curry, Thompson and Poole all firing with unrelenting confidence, you start to find an energy that resembles just a bit of what used to exist in Oakland.
It’s a blink and you might just miss it fervor, where each moment only increases in ridiculousness. This new brew is absurdly captivating; you have Poole throwing behind-the-back pass after behind-the-back pass, launching from nonsensical angles, Thompson going on his scorched earth runs, Curry being himself and shimmying all over the court once again, Green agitating as much as humanly possible.
Nemanja Bjelica even did an Arvydas Sabonis impression with a behind-the-back fake into a post hook off glass. This level of absurdity doesn’t feel like a one off. It feels the tip of the iceburg.
The run and the lineup that changed it
At one point in the second quarter, the Warriors trailed 43-31. They looked uninspired, like they were waking up from a nap that went a bit too long.
Poole snapped them out of it. He snuck a behind-the-back pass in the post to a cutting Bjelica. He promptly grabbed a steal and took an uncontested breakaway for another bucket.
Then, the lineup appeared for the first time. Curry and Thompson checked in, aligning them with Poole, Wiggins and Green.
Whatever corny nickname you want to give that lineup, it is a beast.
That four-point burst from Poole quickly became a 16-0 run and the Warriors, at one point down 12, finished the quarter on a 24-8 run to go up 57-51 at the half.
They somehow built off that stretch, exploding for a 44-point third quarter that had everyone watching the game losing their collective minds. It provided reminders of the dynasty, when Golden State could end any opponent in a five-minute stretch.
That “put them out of their misery” vibe is back. At a moment’s notice, that lineup can ruin anyone’s day. As a team, they shot a disrespectfully good 54.8 percent from the field and 42.5 percent from 3.
With Draymond Green stifling whoever you want to put at center, Andrew Wiggins picking up tons of the defensive slack from Curry and Poole and operating as the athletic, rangy slasher, plus the firebreathing trio, things can and have started to get out of hand without a warning.
Pure agitators
Draymond Green is everyone’s favorite player to love, or favorite player to hate, depending on who you’re rooting for.
There was a really chirpy, get-under-your skin vibe early in this game that Green provided. He and Aaron Gordon — who, if you can explain what his role is for Denver other than firing up the Warriors, please explain it — got into an early exchange heading into a timeout.
Shortly after, a Gary Payton II slap on the butt of Nikola Jokic set Jokic off, and Curry had to intervene.
Jokic, who had 26 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists, was frustrated all game long. He wasn’t alone. With the Warriors heading towards a 20-plus-point lead, the Nuggets fell victim to some infighting.
Green, ever the antagonist, pounced on the moment. As the crowd started to pick up on the unhappiness from the Denver bench, Green came out of the Warriors huddle to center court, cheering the crowd on. It was a premium brand of toxicity that would make Future proud.
All of that agitation, in concert with the Warriors shutting down every thread of hope the Nuggets tried to find, eventually became too much for Jokic.
At the seven-minute mark, he was called for a questionable foul, lost his cool and picked up his second technical foul of the night.
He was greeted by a Warriors home crowd all too happy to usher him down the tunnel.
This is a new Warriors team, but it had plenty of the vintage memories.
You had 34 points from Curry (again off the bench) on 12-of-17 shooting and 5-of-10 from 3, 29 points from Poole on 10-of-16 and 5-of-10 from 3 with eight assists (three of which were behind the back), five rebounds, a couple steals and a block, 21 from Thompson on 9-of-19 and 3-of-8 from 3.
Green was his usually aggressive self, wreaking havoc in all facets and tallying three steals and a block. Without Andre Iguodala in the lineup, Payton II filled in with those quick hands, notching a steal and a pair of blocks. Oh, and Wiggins remained stellar, picking up 13 points of his own with 8 rebounds and persistent defense in that quasi-Harrison Barnes role.